The city of Philadelphia has filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration following the removal of a long-standing exhibit addressing slavery at Independence National Historical Park, a site that includes the former residence of George Washington.
The city’s complaint, filed Thursday in federal court, names the U.S. Department of the Interior, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, the National Park Service, and its acting director, Jessica Bowron, as defendants. Philadelphia is seeking a court order requiring the immediate restoration of the exhibit pending the case’s outcome.
The display stood at the President’s House site, which served as the executive residence for both George Washington and John Adams during the nation’s early years. The exhibit included interpretive panels recognizing people enslaved by Washington, as well as a broader historical timeline documenting slavery in the United States.
City officials said they were not notified in advance that the slavery-related material would be dismantled. In the lawsuit, Philadelphia’s lawyers argued that the displays were a core component of the site and that removing them constituted a significant alteration of the exhibit’s historical interpretation.
The decision drew swift criticism from Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who accused President Donald Trump of attempting to rewrite the nation’s past. Shapiro said the removal reflected an effort to “whitewash” history and emphasized that Pennsylvania confronts its history even when it is uncomfortable.
Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson echoed that criticism, saying the removal of the exhibits does not change historical facts. He argued that eliminating the displays alters the site’s physical landscape but not its historical record.
Congress encouraged the National Park Service in 2003 to formally acknowledge the enslaved people who lived and worked at the President’s House. According to the lawsuit, the city and the National Park Service reached an agreement in 2006 to collaborate on an exhibit, which opened in 2010 and featured a memorial and informational panels focused on slavery and freedom in the early republic.
The lawsuit ties the exhibit’s removal to a broader effort by the Trump administration to eliminate cultural and historical content that conflicts with its policy agenda. In an executive order issued last March, Trump directed the Interior Department to revise materials it oversees that he said promote “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” or unfairly portray historical figures.
Similar changes have already occurred elsewhere. References to Trump’s impeachment and his role surrounding the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol were removed from displays at the Smithsonian Institution, including material near his official portrait at the National Portrait Gallery.
Philadelphia officials argue that the President’s House exhibit is essential to presenting a complete and honest account of the nation’s founding, and they say its removal undermines years of collaborative historical interpretation at one of the country’s most significant sites.
Source: The Guardian